Although I often find myself agreeing with the placings that many of the competitors get in today's top shows - one placing that I didn't understand at all was the one Dennis James got at the 2004 Mr. Olympia Contest. He came eighth place to be exact, down from the fourth place finish he got at the 2003 Mr. Olympia. I did not see the show, and all the reviewing I did was based on the pictures. I have ordered the DVD though, and it should be in on Monday (Valentine's day, 2005), and I'll be able to judge for myself at that point. Even still, judging from pictures is different from judging from the video, and judging from the video is different from being there in person. Since I wasn't personally at the show, I will never know exactly where Dennis James deserved to place.

Check out some pictures for yourself (all pictures will open in a new window):

Although Dennis seems to be holding some water in certain areas, you can tell that his glutes are shredded which goes to say something about his conditioning. Also, if you compare the condition Dennis was in to the condition Ronnie Coleman was in at the show, they are similar - both seemed somewhat water logged, but otherwise big and cut. So my question remains - what exactly kept Dennis down at the show?

I've heard mixed debate about this particular topic - some people seem to be saying that he deserved his low placing and that he was just "off". Dennis James is a bodybuilder known for looking amazing in the time leading up to the show but at the last minute coming in off - with Dennis, in many contests in the past, had the contest been held a day or a week before the actual date, we would have probably seen Dennis place quite a bit higher up the ladder. In 2003, he managed to peak on time for the show - and the result of his efforts was an excellent fourth place finish after Ronnie Coleman, Jay Cutler, and Dexter Jackson. That was Dennis James' best finish in the Mr. Olympia Contest. Basically, if Dennis were able to retain that condition consistently, it would be safe to say he would be a top five finisher at each Mr. Olympia. Was this just another year of Dennis James coming in off from his usual form and missing his peak?...

The second group of people I heard talking about this were basically outraged at Dennis James' low finish. They felt he had nailed his conditioning (coming in with shredded glutes and good separation), as well as added mass (competing around eight pounds heavier than the previous year). These people felt that Dennis James placed low due to his legal trouble that he had earlier in the year and that having him place high in the show would be a black eye for the sport of bodybuilding. We all know how much politics play a role in judging subjective competitions - and we all know that bodybuilding is constantly seeking to improve it's reputation with the general public and get over some of the hurtful stereotypes present.

But which is it? The pictures tell me one story, but being at the contest would be a completely different experience. I would like to open this topic for discussion in the site forum. Click the review link below!